89 hydraulic clutch

so, i put in a manual in place of my old auto trans.
everything is done, but for some reason, it seems like the rod from the slave cylinder to the clutch fork isnt pushing enough, because i turn the car on, and it wot go into any gear as if the clutch fork isnt engaging.

so, me and my buddy welded 2 of those rods together to make it longer, install it and it got into gear, but it didnt fully disengage so there was some lag getting it up to speed, we shortened it down just a bit, and now we're back to sqare one.

anyone have any ideas on what the problem is? i bought the t5 set up and it all worked apparently on the other camaro....so i dont get why it isnt working now.

any input or help would be appreciated